Piecemeal approach to public sector checks

The Queensland government has access to New Zealand's criminal records and has been conducting trans-Tasman background checks on Kiwi security guards for four years.

Attorney-General Paul Lucas said Queensland's Office of Fair Trading last year alone prevented 13 New Zealanders from obtaining security-guard licences because they had criminal convictions in New Zealand.

But the government is not as thorough when cross-checking the backgrounds of New Zealanders applying for jobs in Queensland's public service.

Mr Lucas said New Zealand background checks were conducted on public servants only on a "case-by-case" basis, yet they are compulsory for security guards.

"There are 29,000 people licensed under the Security Providers Act in Queensland, compared to 230,000 public servants," Mr Lucas told AAP.

"Security guards are required to undertake stringent scrutiny checks.

"Obviously, law enforcement officials currently have the ability to communicate with their counterparts in any other jurisdiction to access criminal history records on a case-by-case basis."

The revelation comes after a New Zealand-born man employed as a public servant was charged with fleecing more than $16 million from Queensland Health.

Queensland Health and police have admitted they did not conduct a New Zealand background check on the worker who, his lawyer has indicated, will plead guilty to fraud and other charges.

Premier Anna Bligh on Sunday said the state government did not have direct electronic access to New Zealand's records and had asked Prime Minister Julia Gillard to seek criminal database-sharing with New Zealand.

"What we need is the New Zealand database to be part of that database," Ms Bligh told reporters.

"So it's not a question of law, it's a question of having the electronic capability to press the button and get, not only get someone's record out of Victoria or South Australia, at the same time get New Zealand information.

"New Zealand is in a very specific category (compared to people coming from any other country) and we need to close that loophole."

Garry Oliver, a director of the Security Providers Association of Australia (SPAA), a QUT justice lecturer and former police officer, said he was shocked the government did not conduct criminal background checks on all New Zealand residents applying for public service jobs.

He told AAP any New Zealander who applied for a security provider's licence in Queensland was checked for a New Zealand rap sheet, and public servants should be too.

"If they are licensed under the Security Providers Act, their New Zealand criminal history is checked," Mr Oliver told AAP.

"It's an electronic link-up. So it's as easy as sitting on a computer here and having access to New Zealand."

He said security guards working in government buildings and in casinos were not subjected to New Zealand criminal checks either, because they were exempt from the Security Providers Act.

"This is a minefield," Mr Oliver said.

"You have to keep in mind that in government buildings you do not have to be licensed.

"The Security Providers Act does not apply to government buildings, casinos and crowd controllers at casinos.

"They will only do a criminal history check in Australia."

The Queensland government conducts criminal checks using the Australian database CrimTrac, which does not include New Zealand's criminal database.

Since the alleged fraud was discovered, Ms Bligh has said there must be a trans-Tasman database that would identify anyone with a criminal conviction in New Zealand who applied for a public sector position in Australia.

"As the premier has outlined, it is possible on a case-by-case basis for New Zealand and Australian police to exchange information regarding a person's criminal history, and this does occur," Mr Lucas said.

"This is currently not an automatic process, as there is through a national database shared by Australian jurisdictions, and requires direct contact between New Zealand and Australian authorities.

"It is not currently possible for either Australia or New Zealand to have immediate access to the other country's database. That is what we are looking to address."